Round 6 - Match Preview - Bulldogs vs Saints

[GVGjr]

Just a quick review

Recent Form
2008
St Kilda 11.13 (79) lost to Western Bulldogs 15.16 (106)
Western Bulldogs 19.11 (125) dftd St Kilda 13.9 (87)
2007
Western Bulldogs 12.13 (85) drew St Kilda 12.13 (85)
St Kilda 17.14 (116) dftd Western Bulldogs 9.12 (66)

2009 Form
St Kilda 5 wins 0 losses
Western Bulldogs 3 wins 2 losses

Players under the Pump
Western Bulldogs - Callan Ward, Dylan Addison, Jarrad Grant and Tom Williams (inj)
StKilda - Steven King

Players under consideration
Western Bulldogs - Tim Callan, Adam Cooney, Jason Akermanis, Sam Reid, Stephen Tiller and Andrejs Everitt
StKilda - Justin Koschitzke and Ben McEvoy

Summary - Crunch game for the inconsistent Doggies as they tackle the top of the table StKilda outfit.

Key Match-ups
Dale Morris vs Nick Riewoldt
Morris has the pace to go with the hard working Riewoldt but won;t be able to handle him in the air. Critical one for the Dogs

Brian Lake vs Justin Koschitzke
I expect Koschitzke to play and Lake is the only defender with the size to stop him.

Liam Picken vs Nick Dal Santo
Dal Santo has been a ball magnet and a prime mover for the saints so I expect the Bulldog midfield lockdown specialist to watch him closely.

Stephen Baker vs Brad Johnson
Johnson will demand a close check and Baker has the pedigree to keep him under control.

Who else do the Saints have to watch?
The Dogs will be primed with Akermanis, and Cooney headlining the returns to the senior side. Add to that Griffen who will better just because Cooney is back, Gilbee who badly needs to return to form and Hahn will need to get back to his bull at a gate best.

The Verdict
Hard to go past the Saints but the Dogs might have a few tricks up their sleeve. Dogs by 5 points in a thriller.

[bornadog]

Great to see you still picked the dogs.

[Mantis]

Pretty light on for players under the pump there GVG. I would have thought atleast 6 or 8 'senior' players would want to pull there finger out, so to speak after a couple of poor games. These players could include Gilbee, Hahn, Giansiracusa, etc..

GVG how many midfield run with roles do you think we will go with? I would think we would like to keep the output from Hayes and Montagna in check as well as Dal Santo (as mentioned)

[Sedat]

GVG how many midfield run with roles do you think we will go with? I would think we would like to keep the output from Hayes and Montagna in check as well as Dal Santo (as mentioned)
Gram is the other one - Saints try and use him as the outlet from defence to attack as much as possible, a bit like Gibbs did to us last week. Then there are the guys that get it to Gram in the first place, the likes of Fisher and Gilbert, who are providing fantastic defensive rebounding each week.

I'd like us to try and work through Fisher's and Gilbert's direct opponents up forward. These guys try and peel off their direct opponent as much as possible to set up the forward thrusts from defensive 50 - we did this very well with Higgins on Milburn in last year's PF (if Higgins kicks straight, Milburn has 5 goals kicked on him in the first 20 minutes, and you bet your ass that he sticks to his man like glue from then on and becomes less of an attacking option off half back). By putting some accountability back onto Fisher and Gilbert, it will choke the supply to the outriders like Montagna and Gram, and then cut down the supply to St Kilda's forwards - all of this is easier said than done.

Will be a huge week for our ruck division. If Hudson can give us first purchase this week like he did many times last week, this will nullify St Kilda's contested ball-winning strength, which will also reduce the supply to their outriders and forwards. No King and maybe Kosi as well certainly helps us in this regard. Minson simply has to step it up a couple of notches this week, both in ruck relief around the ground and in his forward play. If both Minson and Hahn have lacklustre games in our forward 50 again this week, we have no chance of containing their defensive rebounding. I'd like Harbrow up forward this week to improve our forward line pressure - won't be hard to improve on last week's non-existent effort.

She'll be a tough day at the office on Sunday.

[The Adelaide Connection]

No love for O'Keefe this week? I would have thought he would be well in the mix after another week in the bests and after all the beat up last week.

[becmatty]

Yep, O'Keefe and Welsh in the mix.

I would say the likely changes are:

In: Cooney, Aker, Welsh
Out: Harbrow, Ward, Hahn

[BulldogBelle]

Steven King is definitely out for this week -

Ross Lyon -

"It was really, really low grade (hamstring strain) and it's an assessment as he goes. We've ruled him out for this week and we'll assess it as he progresses," coach Ross Lyon said.

Kosi they are saying is still a possibility to play but will be monitored throughout the week.

See article Here (http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/afl/story/0,26576,25404102-19742,00.html)

[Mantis]

Gram is the other one - Saints try and use him as the outlet from defence to attack as much as possible, a bit like Gibbs did to us last week. Then there are the guys that get it to Gram in the first place, the likes of Fisher and Gilbert, who are providing fantastic defensive rebounding each week.

I'd like us to try and work through Fisher's and Gilbert's direct opponents up forward. These guys try and peel off their direct opponent as much as possible to set up the forward thrusts from defensive 50 - we did this very well with Higgins on Milburn in last year's PF (if Higgins kicks straight, Milburn has 5 goals kicked on him in the first 20 minutes, and you bet your ass that he sticks to his man like glue from then on and becomes less of an attacking option off half back). By putting some accountability back onto Fisher and Gilbert, it will choke the supply to the outriders like Montagna and Gram, and then cut down the supply to St Kilda's forwards - all of this is easier said than done.

Will be a huge week for our ruck division. If Hudson can give us first purchase this week like he did many times last week, this will nullify St Kilda's contested ball-winning strength, which will also reduce the supply to their outriders and forwards. No King and maybe Kosi as well certainly helps us in this regard. Minson simply has to step it up a couple of notches this week, both in ruck relief around the ground and in his forward play. If both Minson and Hahn have lacklustre games in our forward 50 again this week, we have no chance of containing their defensive rebounding. I'd like Harbrow up forward this week to improve our forward line pressure - won't be hard to improve on last week's non-existent effort.

She'll be a tough day at the office on Sunday.

Agree with much of that Sedat.

On Gram it must be noted that he isn't the best kick going around. Sure he gives the pill a fair roost, but his kicks are rarely lace out daisy-cutters. Still if we don't apply pressure to their 'outriders' players like Gram will put us to the sword.

[Go_Dogs]

Nice preview.

I tend to think we match up pretty well on the Saints individually, how well we play as a team will be the deciding factor.

The type of players that we need to expose are Eddy, Geary and those sort of guys. Whilst Sedat has mentioned Gilbert and a few others as a bit unaccountable, I watched Gilbert pretty closely on the weekend, and he was very good defensively, and really chose his attack/defend moments well.

Montagna as Mantis mentioned is another we need to be mindful of, but they have a few run and carry types these days. Wouldn't be surprised to see a bloke like Farren really work us over this week if we spend too much time on others. (Hang on....maybe that could work in our favor?? ;) )

[Sockeye Salmon]

Gram is the other one - Saints try and use him as the outlet from defence to attack as much as possible, a bit like Gibbs did to us last week.

Eade won't tag Gram, I'm sure.

He doesn't rate him at all. He told us that Gram kicks a long way but doesn't pay a lot of attention as to who he's kicking to. Rocket thinks Gram is responsible for a huge % of St. Kilda's turnovers, even if he doesn't get credited with clangers because he kicks long to contests.

[dog town]

We are certainly right up against it this week. I have no doubt we are more than capable of beating them but it is not ideal to be coming up against the saints style of play when we are a bit down on confidence.


The saints have been playing a very good defensive game. They have been not unlike the hawks of last year in that they have been playing with quite an aggressive zone. Also like the hawks is that this structure has allowed them to carry the 6 or 7 players that were really holding them back. They have been able to fit some players who were previously seen as liabilities into a structure where they have a very defined role. Hawthorn did exactly the same last year and players have thrived on this. Its not just the fact that they are using this so called rolling zone but its the way they are implementing it. At the moment they are working incredibly hard off the ball to shut out options for opposition players coming out off defensive 50. In a way this hard nosed defense has become the greatest offensive weapon they have. Where they previously struggled by foot going forward they now force turnovers and end up with a host of loose players to spot up.

If they apply the same forward press type zone they used against Port then our biggest problem is going to be getting the ball from defensive 50 to our own forward line. I would just like to see us back ourselves and take them on. We might want to avoid taking big risks through the corridor but if something is on then we should go for it. I noticed Port were unwilling to kick to a 1 on 1 contest even out near the boundary line. Obviously we dont want to be kicking to contests all day but we have to be prepared to kick it to space and win these battles rather than coughing the ball up in a dangerous situation.

It really becomes a game of chess in some ways because if we can get the ball forward enough and win some clearances as well then we can turn the tables on the saints. I am convinced they have 10 or so players who are quite average by foot. If we can have the majority of possession then we can really apply the pressure to the way they move the ball. I would expect our guys to come out firing. Our forward pressure was as bad as I can remember last week so expect a few extra efforts this week.

Morris to take Roo as he is the most dangerous forward for them. Lake will likely give him a chop out in most aerial contests. I think Hargrave will get Milne. They have quite a few run with types at the moment. Baker is no good down back so hopefully we can exploit that. Johnson has a history of troubling him so I expect someone else to get him. Griffen and Gilbee need to work harder, much harder.

[Mantis]

Our foot skills have to be first class in this game.... No more kicks along the ground or kicks on top of our players heads. We must hit targets!!

In the practice match against the Saints when they played with this 'rolling zone' we had something like 31 clanger kicks... no surprises we only kicked 5 goals that day and took part in the most boring game I have ever witnessed.

As dog town suggested we have to back ourselves in and if we aren't able to hit a target (for some unknown reason) we must always kick the ball to our advantage such that we are able to hold the ball in the intended area so that we can force a stoppage and start again. We simply can't just gift possession back to St.Kilda as they may burn us on the counter, but hopefully an increased work-rate will apply much more pressure on the ball-carrier and the intended receivers than we have seen over the previous few weeks.

[bornadog]

Yep, O'Keefe and Welsh in the mix.

I would say the likely changes are:

In: Cooney, Aker, Welsh
Out: Harbrow, Ward, Hahn

Don't forget we know Williams will be out this week.

The Saints have been very good in defence and no team has kicked more than 70 points against them to date. Therefore we need to make sure delivery into the forward line is accurate and not just bombed in like the last two weeks.

In the rucks, we know King won't play. The Saints tend to use Blake in the ruck when the ball is in the backline and Kosi if its in the forward line. Kosi needs to test for his hammy, but may not be risked so they will most likely bring in another ruckman to cover King.

[mjp]

On Gram it must be noted that he isn't the best kick going around. Sure he gives the pill a fair roost, but his kicks are rarely lace out daisy-cutters.

Still - it was a last gasp, off the side mongrel torpedo from Gram to Reiwoldt that cost us a win at Telstra Dome in 2007 (in the worst game ever seen it must be said!)

[AndrewP6]

Methinks it is a worry that I am hoping Kosi doesn't get up for this one. I'll take any advantage we may be able to get!...

[The Coon Dog]

The Saints tend to use Baker in the ruck when the ball is in the backline

Surely not! He's about the same size as Tim Callan.

[bornadog]

Surely not! He's about the same size as Tim Callan.

That should read Blake

[Sedat]

Still - it was a last gasp, off the side mongrel torpedo from Gram to Reiwoldt that cost us a win at Telstra Dome in 2007 (in the worst game ever seen it must be said!)
Gram might not have the neatest disposal by foot in the AFL but he kicks it a very long way without much hang-time, hence he can clear congested midfield zones very effectively. The fact that it might not be a neat kick doesn't matter because there is so much space to run into for the oncoming forward.

I think our best weapon is to constantly run at the Saints and use handball to try and chop their zone up. Even though it was wet and we turned it over a couple of times, I thought we worked through North's heavy zone really well in the 3rd qtr of Round 2 by doing this. Our foot skills across the 22 players are a long way off being able to consistently pierce the St Kilda zone with precision foot passing.

[Mantis]

Gram might not have the neatest disposal by foot in the AFL but he kicks it a very long way without much hang-time, hence he can clear congested midfield zones very effectively. The fact that it might not be a neat kick doesn't matter because there is so much space to run into for the oncoming forward.

I think our best weapon is to constantly run at the Saints and use handball to try and chop their zone up. Even though it was wet and we turned it over a couple of times, I thought we worked through North's heavy zone really well in the 3rd qtr of Round 2 by doing this. Our foot skills across the 22 players are a long way off being able to consistently pierce the St Kilda zone with precision foot passing.

Going on last weeks performance our handballing skills aren't a whole lot better.

[Bulldog Revolution]

Will they swing Gilbert up forward to try and stretch us?

Johnson might be able to expose Baker in the air. I'd thought Baker might be considered on Aker

[Mantis]

Will they swing Gilbert up forward to try and stretch us?

Last week St.Kilda played for much of the game with just Riewoldt as a tall marking option. The weather conditions probably suited this line-up, but if they go with this structure again we should be able to comfortably handle Gilbert going forward (Lake)

[Jasper]

I wonder who Ray will pick up? Id like to see him matched on Bob Murphy

[Dogs 24/7]

I wonder who Ray will pick up? Id like to see him matched on Bob Murphy

I'd like to think that would be a good matchup for us. It will be interesting to see how Ray performs against us. Normally past players do well against their won club.

Just out of curiosity if Morris struggles with Riewoldt (like he did with Buddy in the finals) would we have to bite the bullet and send Lake onto him?

[azabob]

I'd like to think that would be a good matchup for us. It will be interesting to see how Ray performs against us. Normally past players do well against their won club.

Just out of curiosity if Morris struggles with Riewoldt (like he did with Buddy in the finals) would we have to bite the bullet and send Lake onto him?

Reality is if Morris starts on Riewoldt and has to moved off him it will be the midfields fault, not Morris.

[Rocket Science]

I wonder who Ray will pick up? Id like to see him matched on Bob Murphy

Watch him go out and do the mother of all jobs on Gia or Cross.

I hope Lakey gives him one...before a hug 'n kiss after the siren.

[azabob]

Watch him go out and do the mother of all jobs on Gia or Cross.

I hope Lakey gives him one...before a hug 'n kiss after the siren.

Yeah cause we can affoard Lake to be suspended for a week or two.

[Rocket Science]

Ahh, good point.

I hope Will gives him one instead.

[LostDoggy]

If we want to win the flag, we have to win tomorrow.

[hujsh]

If we want to win the flag, we have to win tomorrow.

Yes, the entire season depends on tomorrows H&A match and every other result is irrelevant!

[AndrewP6]

If we want to win the flag, we have to win tomorrow.

That's a bit depressing...I do think if we have 3 losses on the trot, it puts a big dent in our confidence...Hawthorn did alright today though...

How good would it be to have the other Roughead in a Dog's jumper?

[Dogs 24/7]

From the little I have seen of McEvoy I don't think he will worry us that much. With Kosi a likely out I think it tips the game odds back our way a bit. It might depend if its Cooney or some else joining Williams on the MIA bench.

[The Pie Man]

That's a bit depressing...I do think if we have 3 losses on the trot, it puts a big dent in our confidence...Hawthorn did alright today though...

How good would it be to have the other Roughead in a Dog's jumper?

Let's hope ours can get somewhere near his level, he was outstanding yesterday.

It's hard not to think what we'd be like right now with one of Roughead, Pavlich, Hall etc. It's not just the goals they kick, it's the contest in the forward 50. We'd be consistently top 2 with an elite power forward. Welsh isn't it, but how important was he at times last year?

Adelaide & Melbourne in the coming weeks, not quaking in my boots at that. With a few out/underdone, I'll be happy with a good contest.

[LostDoggy]

I'm going but geez i hope its not like the pre season game at visy park, that was
torture to watch.

[Mofra]

I'm going but geez i hope its not like the pre season game at visy park, that was
torture to watch.
That was in the middle of a massive fitness loading program. Hopefully we are alot fresher, coming off a 7 day break at Doglands last week.

[LostDoggy]

That was in the middle of a massive fitness loading program. Hopefully we are alot fresher, coming off a 7 day break at Doglands last week.

Sorry, i didnt mean the result so much as the way the game was played.

[Mofra]

Sorry, i didnt mean the result so much as the way the game was played.
I think they way it was played was partly a result of the load up. One of the coaches mentioned it looked like the players were running through mud.

I would hope we are alot fresher this time around, although to be honest I thought the group looked a bit flat last week.

Hoping it was a light week on the track & we come out with all guns blazing.